96 REMINISCENCES OF 



this one day when dining at Mr. Melville's, a gentle- 

 man present, a stranger to him, said he would be 

 happy to paint it. To this the Colonel consented 

 on learning that the speaker was a portrait painter 

 who had come to paint a picture of Mr. Whyte- 

 Melville. The artist accordingly went to the kennel, 

 found no one at home except the feeder, who put 

 a pair of couples on "Wiseman," who was very 

 cross and came out with his tail between his legs 

 and his ears back as if he was gfoinaf to be hang-ed. 

 The portrait was painted, a faithful likeness, 

 couples and all, and sent home. On seeing it the 

 Colonel suggested that the expression was not quite 

 happy, and that the couples should not have been 

 introduced, and returned it to be altered. The 

 painter altered the expression slightly, cocked up 

 the ears, painted out the couples, but leaving the 

 collar, and returned it to the astonished master, who 

 at least possesses a unique picture of a foxhound. 



" Ramornie, Ladybank, 

 '■^ 12th January, 1873. 



" My Dear Thomson, — 



"Will you take the hounds next season? 

 I only took them for one year as an interregnum. I 

 may go or the hunt may turn me out. Supposing 

 they don't do that, I am too grateful for the kindness 

 shown to me by all you Fifers, great and small, to 

 throw the thing up in a hurry ; and, indeed, I like it 

 very much, and I know it is bad for a country to 

 have any uncertainty about masters, and therefore 

 I have not hinted to any one of this proposal to you ; 



